HEAT TREATMENT APPARATUS AND HEAT TREATMENT METHOD
The present disclosure provides an apparatus of performing a heat treatment with respect to a substrate mounted within a processing vessel, including: a substrate mounting stand including an inner portion configured to transfer heat to a central portion of the substrate and a heat generation regulating portion configured to generate heat through an induction heating; a magnetic field forming mechanism configured to form magnetic fields with alternating current power and to inductively heat the heat generation regulating portion; a power supply unit configured to supply the alternating current power to the magnetic field forming mechanism; a temperature measuring unit configured to measure a temperature of the heat generation regulating portion; a control unit configured to control the alternating current power; and a gas supply unit configured to supply a treatment gas to the substrate mounted on the mounting stand.
This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-204023, filed on Sep. 30, 2013, in the Japan Patent Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.
TECHNICAL FIELDThe present disclosure relates to a heat treatment apparatus and a heat treatment method for heating a substrate through an induction heating of a mounting stand on which the substrate is mounted and for performing heat treatment by supplying treatment gas to the substrate.
BACKGROUNDFor a batch type apparatus for performing a process of forming thin films with respect to a plurality of semiconductor wafers (hereinafter referred to as “wafers”) as substrates simultaneously, there is known a vertical heat treatment apparatus that includes a wafer boat, which holds the wafers, such as a shelf and a processing vessel (reaction tube) for air-tightly accommodating the wafer boat inside the processing vessel. A gas injector extending in an up-down direction so as to discharge a film-forming gas toward the respective wafers is installed between an inner wall surface of the processing vessel and the wafer boat.
This heat treatment apparatus employs so-called a hot wall method in which the respective wafers are heated by a heater installed outside the processing vessel. Therefore, the outer periphery region of a wafer located at an arbitrary position is positioned closer to the heater than the central region of the wafer. For that reason, the temperature of the central region is lower than the temperature of the outer periphery region. Thus, the temperature distribution of the wafer is so-called valley-shaped.
In the hot wall type film-forming apparatus, the processing vessel is heated as a whole. Thus, as the diameter of the wafer becomes greater, the processing vessel grows larger in size and the heat capacity increases. This leads to an increase in the time and energy consumption required for heating the respective wafers. Under the circumstances, a cold wall type apparatus has been studied as an alternative for the hot wall type apparatus.
That is to say, the cold wall type apparatus has a configuration in which an electromagnet is installed outside the processing vessel and high-frequency power is supplied to the electromagnet (electromagnetic induction coil). By switching the direction of magnetic fields at a high speed, a wafer mounting stand is heated by induced current. Then, the respective wafers are heated through the mounting stand. This eliminates the need to heat the processing vessel. Therefore, as compared to the hot wall type apparatus, it is possible to shorten the heating time and to save the energy.
There is also disclosed a method in which, in a cold wall type apparatus, a susceptor for holding a wafer is divided into an inner periphery portion and an outer periphery portion to control the heat generation distribution at the susceptor. In addition, there is known a cold wall type apparatus in which a ring-shaped notch is formed along a circumferential direction of an outer periphery portion of a susceptor. However, in the aforementioned technology, when forming a thin film on the surface of the wafer, no consideration is given to the uniformity of a film thickness of a thin film at the plane of the wafer.
SUMMARYSome embodiments of the present disclosure provide a technique that, when heating a substrate mounted on a mounting stand through an induction heating of the mounting stand and when performing a heat treatment by supplying a treatment gas to the substrate, can perform the heat treatment with good uniformity at the plane of the substrate.
According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided an apparatus of performing a heat treatment with respect to a substrate mounted within a processing vessel, including: a mounting stand on which the substrate is mounted, the mounting stand including an inner portion configured to transfer heat from an outer periphery portion of the substrate to a central portion thereof and a heat generation regulating portion annularly installed at the outer periphery portion of the inner portion so as to extend along a circumferential direction and configured to generate heat through an induction heating; a magnetic field forming mechanism designed to form magnetic fields with alternating current power supplied thereto and configured to inductively heat the heat generation regulating portion by allowing magnetic fluxes parallel to a mounting surface of the inner portion to pass through the heat generation regulating portion; a power supply unit configured to supply the alternating current power to the magnetic field forming mechanism; a temperature measuring unit configured to measure a temperature of the heat generation regulating portion; a control unit configured to control the alternating current power supplied to the magnetic field forming mechanism, based on a temperature value measured by the temperature measuring unit and a target temperature; and a gas supply unit configured to supply a treatment gas to the substrate mounted on the mounting stand from a peripheral edge of the mounting stand, the heat generation regulating portion having a thickness dimension set equal to or smaller than two times of a skin depth which is decided based on a magnetic permeability and resistivity of the heat generation regulating portion and a frequency of the alternating current power.
According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided an apparatus of performing a heat treatment with respect to a substrate mounted within a processing vessel, including: a mounting stand including an inner portion on which the substrate is mounted and a heat generation regulating portion installed at a peripheral edge portion of the inner portion and configured to generate heat through an induction heating, the heat generation regulating portion including an outer end surface and a notch cut on the outer end surface to annularly extend along a circumferential direction such that a temperature of a central portion of the inner portion becomes higher than a temperature of the heat generation regulating portion; a magnetic field forming mechanism designed to form magnetic fields with alternating current power supplied thereto and configured to inductively heat the heat generation regulating portion by allowing magnetic fluxes parallel to a mounting surface of the inner portion to pass through the heat generation regulating portion; a power supply unit configured to supply the alternating current power to the magnetic field forming mechanism; a temperature measuring unit configured to measure the temperature of the heat generation regulating portion; a control unit configured to control the alternating current power supplied to the magnetic field forming mechanism, based on a temperature value measured by the temperature measuring unit and a target temperature; and a gas supply unit configured to supply a treatment gas to the substrate mounted on the mounting stand from a peripheral edge of the mounting stand.
According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a method of performing a heat treatment with respect to a substrate mounted within a processing vessel, including: mounting the substrate on an inner portion; inductively heating a heat generation regulating portion annularly installed in an outer periphery portion of the inner portion to extend along a circumferential direction, by supplying alternating current power to a magnetic field forming mechanism and by allowing magnetic fluxes parallel to a mounting surface of the inner portion to pass through the heat generation regulating portion, and transferring heat from the heat generation regulating portion to a central portion of the inner portion through the inner portion; measuring a temperature of the heat generation regulating portion; controlling the alternating current power supplied to the magnetic field forming mechanism, based on a measured temperature value of the heat generation regulating portion and a target temperature; and supplying a treatment gas to the substrate mounted on the inner portion from a peripheral edge of the inner portion, the heat generation regulating portion having a thickness dimension set equal to or smaller than two times of a skin depth which is decided based on a magnetic permeability and resistivity of the heat generation regulating portion and a frequency of the alternating current power, whereby the heat treatment is performed in such a state that a temperature of a central portion of the substrate is higher than a temperature of a peripheral edge portion of the substrate.
According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a method of performing a heat treatment with respect to a substrate mounted within a processing vessel, including: mounting the substrate on an inner portion; inductively heating a heat generation regulating portion annularly installed in an outer periphery portion of the inner portion and provided with an outer end surface and a notch cut on the outer end surface to annularly extend along a circumferential direction, by supplying alternating current power to a magnetic field forming mechanism and by allowing magnetic fluxes parallel to a mounting surface of the inner portion to pass through the heat generation regulating portion, and transferring heat from the heat generation regulating portion to a central portion of the inner portion through the inner portion such that a temperature of a central portion of the substrate becomes higher than a temperature of a peripheral edge portion of the substrate; measuring a temperature of the heat generation regulating portion; controlling the alternating current power supplied to the magnetic field forming mechanism, based on a measured temperature value of the heat generation regulating portion and a target temperature; and supplying a treatment gas to the substrate mounted on the inner portion from a peripheral edge of the inner portion.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the present disclosure, and together with the general description given above and the detailed description of the embodiments given below, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure.
Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, systems, and components have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure aspects of the various embodiments.
One example of an embodiment in which a heat treatment apparatus according to the present disclosure is applied to a film-forming apparatus will be described with reference to
The aforementioned susceptors 1 for holding the wafers W having a circular shape when seen in a plan view are accommodated within the processing vessel 2 at a plurality of stages (twelve stages in this embodiment) in an up-down direction. The outer periphery portion of each of the susceptors 1 is supported by support posts 3a, which are vertically extended, at a plurality of points (three points in this embodiment) such that a gap region is formed between the neighboring susceptors 1. That is to say, the susceptors 1 are held by the support posts 3a. The susceptors 1 and the support posts 3a constitute a wafer holder 3.
As shown in
The width dimension d of the protrusion portion 1b is set to be equal to, e.g., 20 mm. The thickness dimension H of the heat generation regulating portion 1c is set to be equal to, e.g., 15 mm or less. A region that exists at the inner side of the heat generation regulating portion 1c and supports the inner portion of the wafer W is referred to as an “inner portion 1d”. The thickness dimension t of the inner portion 1d is set to be smaller than the thickness dimension H (equal to 5 mm in this embodiment). The reason for setting the dimensions d, H and t in this way will be described later in detail. In
An opening that can be air-tightly opened and closed by a gate valve 6 is formed at the side surface portion of the processing vessel 2 at the lateral side of the wafer holder 3, so that the wafer W can be delivered to each of the susceptors 1 through the opening. A configuration (transfer mechanism 31) for delivering the wafer W to each of the susceptors 1 will be described later. In
Gas injectors 11 that constitute a gas supply unit for supplying a film-forming gas into the processing vessel 2 are air-tightly inserted through the side wall of the processing vessel 2 in the vicinity of the lower end of the processing vessel 2. A tip portion (upper end portion) of each of the gas injectors 11 is opened between the bottom plate 3c of the wafer holder 3 and the susceptor 1 adjoining the bottom plate 3c at the upper side thereof. As shown in
An exhaust port 16 is formed at the lower end sidewall of the processing vessel 2 at a position opposite to the gas injectors 11. An exhaust path 17, which extends from the exhaust port 16, is connected to a vacuum exhaust mechanism 19 such as a vacuum pump or the like, through a pressure regulating unit 18 such as a butterfly valve or the like. In
One sidewall (e.g., the left sidewall in
As shown in
One longitudinal end portion and the other longitudinal end portion of the magnetic core 23 are horizontally bent toward the wafer holder 3 such that the end portions face the left and right wall surface portions 21a and 21b of the aforementioned window 21. The aforementioned coils 24a and 24b are wound around one end portion and the other end portion of the magnetic core 23. The coils 24a and 24b are serially connected to each other. The coils 24a and 24b are connected to a high-frequency power supply 27 having an output frequency of, e.g., 50 kHz, through a switch 25 and a matcher 26. In this embodiment, the winding direction of the coils 24a and 24b and the wiring of the coils 24a and 24b connected to the high-frequency power supply 27 in the coil unit 22 are set, such that two magnetic pole surfaces having opposite polarities can constitute a U-shaped electromagnet that faces toward the window 21.
As mentioned above, two coils 24a and 24b are serially connected to each other. A terminal of one coil 24a is connected to the high-frequency power supply 27. A terminal of the other coil 24b is grounded. At a certain moment during the supply of high-frequency power to the coils 24a and 24b, if one end portion (magnetic pole face) of the magnetic core 23 wound with one coil 24a becomes the N pole, the other end portion of the magnetic core 23 wound with the other coil 24b becomes the S pole. Therefore, as shown in
As described above, the opposite end portions of the magnetic core 23 are arranged to adjoin the wafer holder 3 through the window 21. The magnetic pole faces of the opposite end portions of the magnetic core 23 are configured to face the side surfaces of the susceptors 1. For that reason, horizontal magnetic lines (magnetic flux) are formed between the opposite end portions of the magnetic core 23. An induced current is generated in a region where the magnetic lines penetrate the vertical cross sections of the susceptors 1. For example, an a-b cross section of
The induced current has a tendency (skin effect) to be pushed toward the outside of the region penetrated by the magnetic lines. The induced current becomes a loop-shaped current that flows over a range of the frequency-dependent depth δ (skin depth) from the surface of the susceptor 1. Thus, the flow path of the induced current is largely affected by the shape of the vertical cross section of the susceptor 1. As shown in
As shown in
Now, the reason for setting the respective dimensions d, H and t of the susceptor 1 as mentioned above will be described in detail. First, description will be made on the width dimension d of the protrusion portion 1b formed in the peripheral edge portion of the lower surface of the susceptor 1. As mentioned above, the induced current flowing on the cross section of the protrusion portion 1b is affected by the width dimension d of the protrusion portion 1b as well as the thickness dimension H thereof. In order to assure that heat is effectively generated by the induced current, the width dimension d needs to be made sufficiently larger than the depth δ.
If the width dimension d is too large, the heat capacity of the susceptor 1 is increased. Therefore, when heating the susceptor 1, the high-frequency power needs to be made larger. Or, the time required for the temperature of the susceptor 1 to reach a target temperature is prolonged. When the susceptor 1 is cooled after finishing a film-forming process for the wafer W, the susceptor 1 is hard to discharge the heat. As a result, the time required in cooling the susceptor 1 is prolonged. Thus, in the present disclosure, the width dimension d of the protrusion portion 1b is set sufficiently larger than the depth δ as well as not to significantly increase the heat capacity. A specific numerical value range of the width dimension d is from 15 mm to 22.5 mm, which is twice or about three times the depth δ. The thickness dimension t of the inner portion 1d is set so as to minimize the heat capacity while maintaining the strength and machining accuracy of the susceptor 1. In the present embodiment, the susceptor 1 is made of graphite. Therefore, when defined based on the diameter dimension (300 mm) of the wafer W, the thickness dimension t of the inner portion 1d becomes equal to 5 mm.
Subsequently, prior to describing the thickness dimension H of the heat generation regulating portion 1c in detail, a conventional configuration and its related problems will be first described. That is to say, the configuration of a conventional susceptor 1 is shown at the upper end in
When a film-forming process is performed with respect to the wafers W mounted on the susceptors 1, the susceptors 1 are stacked at multiple stages in an up-down direction as mentioned above. In this case, a mechanism for supplying a film-forming gas to the wafers W must have a configuration in which a film-forming gas is supplied to the lateral side of the wafers W. In other words, if the susceptors 1 are stacked one above another, individual gas supply mechanisms need to be installed at the respective susceptors 1 by a method in which a film-forming gas is supplied to the wafers W from above just like a shower. As a result, the height dimension of the apparatus is increased. This makes it difficult to employ the method.
The film-forming gas injected at the lower side within the processing vessel 2 is moved upward within the processing vessel 2 and is supplied to the lateral side of the wafers W. More specifically, the film-forming gas flows from the outer peripheral edges of the wafers W toward the central portions thereof. Thereafter, the film-forming gas is discharged from the central portions toward the outer peripheral edges of the wafers W that differ from the outer peripheral edges at which the film-forming gas is supplied. If the film-forming gas flowing in this way makes contact with the wafers W, the film-forming gas is thermally decomposed. Thus, a decomposed product is deposited. As a result, the amount of the film-forming gas decreases as the film-forming gas flows from the upstream side toward the downstream side in the flow direction of the film-forming gas. Moreover, the film-forming gas is thermally decomposed with ease as the temperature of the wafers W becomes higher.
Accordingly, in the outer periphery portions of the wafers W having a higher temperature and a higher film-forming gas concentration than the central portions of the wafers W, the thermal decomposition of the film-forming gas actively occurs. On the other hand, the central portions of the wafers W are lower in temperature than the outer periphery portions of the wafers W. The film-forming gas is mostly or partially absorbed by thermal decomposition at the outer periphery portions. Consequently, the film-forming gas concentration is lower at the central portions than at the outer periphery portions. For that reason, as shown at the lower end in
In contrast, according to the present disclosure, the thickness dimension H of the heat generation regulating portion 1c is set such that the film thickness of the thin films becomes uniform in the plane of the wafer W. Specifically, the thickness dimension H is set as indicted by the following equation (1):
H≦2×δ (1)
In the equation (1), the δ is represented by the following equation (2):
In the equation (2), the δ is a skin depth (cm), the ρ is a specific resistance (μΩ·cm) of a susceptor material, the f is a frequency (Hz) of high-frequency power, and the μ is a magnetic permeability (−) of a susceptor material. In this embodiment, the specific resistance ρ, the frequency f and the magnetic permeability μ are set equal to 1100, 50000 and 1, respectively. The skin depth δ is set equal to 0.74607 cm. Accordingly, the thickness dimension H becomes 15 mm or less.
That is to say, if the high-frequency power is supplied to the coil unit 22 as mentioned above, an induced current flows on the cross section of the protrusion portion 1b of the susceptor 1 due to the horizontal magnetic lines formed by the high-frequency power. The induced current is a loop-shaped current flowing over a range of the depth δ from the surface of the protrusion portion 1b. For that reason, the flow path of the induced current is largely affected by the cross-sectional shape of the protrusion portion 1b. More specifically, if the thickness dimension H of the protrusion portion 1b is sufficiently larger than the skin depth, when the induced current flows in a loop shape, the currents flowing in the opposite directions through the upper and lower flow paths do not interfere with each other. Thus, in this case the currents do not cancel each other out.
On the other hand, if the thickness dimension H of the protrusion portion 1b is set as indicated by the aforementioned equation (1), when the induced current flows in a loop shape on the cross section of the protrusion portion 1b as shown at the upper end in
The temperature of the heat generation regulating portion 1c of the susceptor 1 is measured by the thermocouple 10a inserted into the side surface of the protrusion portion 1b. Therefore, during the time at which the temperature of the heat generation regulating portion 1c reaches a target temperature, it is possible to secure sufficient time and heat amount required in transferring the energy, which is supplied to the heat generation regulating portion 1c, to the central portion of the susceptor 1 as heat. For that reason, as can be noted from the below-described embodiment, the temperature of the central portion of the wafer W becomes higher than the temperature of the peripheral edge portion. As shown at the middle position in
Referring back to the description on the configuration of the apparatus, as shown in
As shown in
On the other hand, the lower arm unit 35 is designed to perform the up/down movement of the wafer W supported on the upper arm unit 34. Lifter pins 36 installed to penetrate the through-holes 1e of the susceptor 1 are arranged at, e.g., three points, on the upper surface of the tip portion of the lower arm unit 35. The lifter pins 36 and the wafer holding portion of the upper arm unit 34 are disposed so as not to interfere with each other (not to make contact with each other).
The lower arm unit 35 is spaced apart from the upper arm unit 34 by a dimension slightly larger than the sum of the thickness dimension of the susceptor 1 and the length dimension of the lifter pins 36. The lower arm unit 35 is configured such that it can be moved up and down with respect to the upper arm unit 34 by an elevator mechanism which is not shown. In
The delivery of the wafer W using the transfer mechanism 31 will be briefly described. First, as shown in
As shown in
Next, description will be made on the operation of the aforementioned embodiment. First, the gate valve 6 is opened and the wafers W are loaded onto the respective susceptors 1 through the transfer mechanism 31 in the aforementioned manner. Then, the processing vessel 2 is air-tightly closed and the inside of the processing vessel 2 is evacuated. Subsequently, the internal pressure of the processing vessel 2 is set to a processing pressure. While rotating the wafer holder 3 about the vertical axis, electric power is supplied from the high-frequency power supply 27 to the respective coil units 22. The heat generation regulating portion 1c of each of the susceptors 1 is annularly heated by the induced current. The central portion of the susceptor 1 is also heated by the heat transferred from the heat generation regulating portion 1c. Thus, a ridge-shaped temperature distribution is formed at each of the wafers W.
Subsequently, upon supplying a film-forming gas into the processing vessel 2, the film-forming gas flows between one susceptor 1 and another susceptor 1 adjacent to one susceptor 1 at the upper side thereof along the surface of the wafer W mounted on one susceptor 1. Inasmuch as the ridge-shaped temperature distribution in which the temperature becomes higher at the central portion than at the peripheral edge portion is formed at each of the wafers W, the thin film formed on each of the wafers W by the reaction of the film-forming gas has a uniform in-plane thickness.
Now, description will be made on one embodiment of a film-forming gas supply sequence. Specifically, in case of the ALD method described above, a source gas and a reaction gas are alternately supplied into the processing vessel 2. When switching the source gas and the reaction gas, a purge gas such as a nitrogen (N2) gas or the like is supplied into the processing vessel 2 from a purge gas supply unit not shown, thereby replacing the internal atmosphere of the processing vessel 2. On the other hand, in case of the CVD method, the source gas and the reaction gas are simultaneously supplied into the processing vessel 2. The source gas and the reaction gas react with each other on the surface of the wafer W to form a thin film.
According to the aforementioned embodiment, when a thin film is formed by heating the wafer W on the susceptor 1 through an induction heating of the susceptor 1, the heat generation regulating portion 1c of the susceptor 1 is annularly formed at the outer side of the inner portion 1d so as to include the region that adjoins the outer edge of the wafer W mounted on the inner portion 1d. The thickness dimension H of the heat generation regulating portion 1c is set equal to two times or less of the skin depth δ. For that reason, the heating efficiency of the heat generation regulating portion 1c of the susceptor 1 decreases depending on the thickness dimension H. The amount of the heat transferred to the central portion of the susceptor 1 becomes relatively higher. This makes it possible to heat the inner portion 1d to a temperature higher than the temperature of heat generation regulating portion 1c. Thus, the temperature distribution of the wafer W mounted on the susceptor 1 has a ridge shape. Even if the film-forming gas is supplied to the wafer W at the lateral side thereof, the film-forming gas is difficult to be absorbed at the peripheral edge portion of the wafer W. Consequently, the thickness of the film can be made uniform in the plane of the wafer W.
That is to say, when heating the susceptor 1 by the induction heating, it is typical to design the shape of the susceptor 1 such that larger induced current flows at the susceptor 1. In the present disclosure, the induced current flowing in the heat generation regulating portion 1c is reduced by intentionally adjusting the thickness dimension H of the heat generation regulating portion 1c. For that reason, although the temperature distribution of the wafer W shows a ridge-shaped distribution in the plane of the wafer W, the thickness of the thin film is made uniform. Accordingly, the present application discloses a method which is very effective in performing a film-forming process with respect to a plurality of wafers W stacked like a shelf using a cold wall type induction heating apparatus configured to heat the susceptor 1 by the induction heating and to heat the wafer W through the susceptor 1.
Another embodiment of the susceptor according to the present disclosure will now be described.
If the heat generation regulating portion 1c is provided by forming the notch 51 on the side circumferential surface of the susceptor 1 in the above manner, as schematically shown in
In the present embodiment, the width dimension k of the notch 51 that constitutes the heat generation regulating portion 1c is set equal to 3 mm. However, as mentioned above, in some embodiments, the width dimension k is set as small as possible such that the heat capacity of the heat generation regulating portion 1c should not be made too small. Since the material of the susceptor 1 is graphite in the present embodiment, the width dimension k of the notch 51 can be reduced to 1 mm in view of the machining accuracy.
It may be possible to form a plurality of notches 51.
If the heat generation regulating portion 1c is provided by forming two notches 51 on the side circumferential surface of the susceptor 1 in the above manner, the induced current flowing on the cross sections of the upper, middle and lower portions can be adjusted by setting the thickness dimensions h1, h2 and h3 of the upper, middle and lower portions to become equal to or smaller than 2δ, as shown in
Use of this wafer holding mechanism eliminates the need to perform a complex machining work with respect to the susceptor 1. Moreover, it is only necessary to use a single arm unit 61 for holding the wafer W. This makes it possible to simplify the apparatus.
The heat generation regulating portion 1c is formed in an annular shape along the outer peripheral edge of the susceptor 1 when seen in a plan view. In this case, the heat generation regulating portion 1c may be formed at a position shifted from the outer periphery portion of the susceptor 1 toward the central portion of the wafer W or may be formed at a location shifted outward from the outer periphery portion of the susceptor 1. In other words, the heat generation regulating portion 1c may be arranged so as to heat the outer peripheral edge of the wafer W mounted on the susceptor 1 and such that the inner portion of the wafer W is heated by the heat transferred from the outer peripheral edge of the wafer W. When delivering the wafer W to the susceptor 1, the transfer mechanism 31 is moved forward and backward while keeping the wafer holder 3 accommodated within the processing vessel 2. Alternatively, the wafer holder 3 may be taken out from the processing vessel 2 into a laterally shifted region by a transfer device not shown. The wafer W may be delivered to the susceptor 1 at the laterally shifted region.
The wafer holder 3 is configured such that it can be rotated about the vertical axis. Alternatively, the coil units 22 may be disposed at a plurality of points at a regular interval at the outer side of the processing vessel 2 when seen in a plan view such that, even if the wafer holder 3 is not rotated, magnetic lines are formed along the circumferential direction of the susceptor 1. Accordingly, the susceptor 1 of the present disclosure may be formed into, e.g., a rectangular shape rather than a circular shape when seen in a plan view and may be applied to an embodiment where a thin film is formed on a glass substrate for an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display).
In the foregoing embodiment, description has been made on the embodiment in which the thin film is formed on the surface of the wafer W. However, instead of the formation of the thin film, an oxidizing treatment or a modifying treatment may be performed as the heat treatment for the wafer W. Specifically, in case of performing the oxidizing treatment, an oxidizing gas (an oxygen (O2) gas or an ozone (O3) gas) is used as a treatment gas. In case of performing the modifying treatment, water (H2O) vapor is used as a treatment gas. Even when performing the oxidizing treatment or the modifying treatment, a ridge-shaped temperature distribution is formed at the respective wafer W. Thus, this treatment through the use of the treatment gas is uniformly performed at the plane of the wafer W, and accordingly it becomes possible to perform a uniform heat treatment.
ExampleNext, description will be made on an example implemented with respect to the present disclosure.
If the thickness dimension H of the heat generation regulating portion 1c is set equal to or smaller than two times of the skin depth δ, as compared to a case where the thickness dimension H is set greater than two times of the skin depth δ, it is possible to reduce the heat generation efficiency of the induced current at the heat generation regulating portion 1c. For that reason, as described above, the temperature distribution of the wafer W mounted on the susceptor 1 can be set in a ridge shape.
Even when the heat generation regulating portion 1c is provided by forming the notch 51 on the side circumferential surface of the susceptor 1 as described above, if the thickness dimension of the respective portions divided by the notch 51 is set equal to or smaller than two times of the skin depth δ, the heat generation efficiency of the heat generation regulating portion 1c can be reduced and the temperature distribution of the wafer W mounted on the susceptor 1 can be adjusted into a ridge shape.
As a result, the temperature distribution at the wafer W was set in a ridge shape regardless of the internal pressure of the processing vessel 2.
The results of the measurement of the temperature distribution at the wafer W mounted on the susceptor 1 when the thickness dimension H of the heat generation regulating portion 1c is set equal to 18 mm (equal to or greater than two times of the skin depth δ) will now be described. The measurement was conducted with respect to two kinds of the shape of the susceptor 1 shown in
In
According to the present disclosure, when a heat treatment is performed by heating the substrate on the mounting stand through an induction heating of the mounting stand, the mounting stand is configured by the inner portion that supports the inner region of the substrate and the heat generation regulating portion that regulates the amount of heat generation at the outer periphery side of the inner portion. The thickness dimension of the heat generation regulating portion is set or the groove-shaped notch is formed at the heat generation regulating portion such that the temperature of the heat generation regulating portion becomes lower than the temperature of the inner portion. For that reason, the mounting stand is heated while maintaining a balance between the amount of heat generation at the heat generation regulating portion and the amount of the heat transferred from the heat generation regulating portion to the inner portion. Thus, the temperature distribution at the substrate mounted on the mounting stand can be adjusted into a ridge shape (a state in which the temperature of the central portion becomes higher than the temperature of the peripheral edge portion). Accordingly, even if a treatment gas is supplied to the substrate at the lateral side thereof, the treatment gas is difficult to be absorbed at the peripheral edge portion of the substrate. As a result, the concentration of the treatment gas can be made uniform at the plane of the substrate.
While certain embodiments have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosures. Indeed, the embodiments described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms. Furthermore, various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form of the embodiments described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of the disclosures. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope and spirit of the disclosures.
Claims
1. An apparatus of performing a heat treatment with respect to a substrate mounted within a processing vessel, comprising:
- a mounting stand on which the substrate is mounted, the mounting stand including an inner portion configured to transfer heat from an outer periphery portion of the substrate to a central portion of the substrate, and a heat generation regulating portion annularly installed at the outer periphery portion of the inner portion so as to extend along a circumferential direction and configured to generate heat through an induction heating;
- a magnetic field forming mechanism designed to form magnetic fields by alternating current power supplied to the magnetic field forming mechanism, and configured to inductively heat the heat generation regulating portion by allowing magnetic fluxes parallel to a mounting surface of the inner portion to pass through the heat generation regulating portion;
- a power supply unit configured to supply the alternating current power to the magnetic field forming mechanism;
- a temperature measuring unit configured to measure a temperature of the heat generation regulating portion;
- a control unit configured to control the alternating current power supplied to the magnetic field forming mechanism, based on a temperature value measured by the temperature measuring unit and a target temperature; and
- a gas supply unit configured to supply a treatment gas to the substrate mounted on the mounting stand from a peripheral edge of the mounting stand,
- the heat generation regulating portion having a thickness dimension set equal to or smaller than two times of a skin depth which is decided based on a magnetic permeability and resistivity of the heat generation regulating portion and a frequency of the alternating current power.
2. An apparatus of performing a heat treatment with respect to a substrate mounted within a processing vessel, comprising:
- a mounting stand including an inner portion on which the substrate is mounted and a heat generation regulating portion installed at a peripheral edge portion of the inner portion and configured to generate heat through an induction heating, the heat generation regulating portion including an outer end surface and a notch cut on the outer end surface to annularly extend along a circumferential direction such that a temperature of a central portion of the inner portion becomes higher than a temperature of the heat generation regulating portion;
- a magnetic field forming mechanism designed to form magnetic fields by alternating current power supplied to the magnetic field forming mechanism and configured to inductively heat the heat generation regulating portion by allowing magnetic fluxes parallel to a mounting surface of the inner portion to pass through the heat generation regulating portion;
- a power supply unit configured to supply the alternating current power to the magnetic field forming mechanism;
- a temperature measuring unit configured to measure the temperature of the heat generation regulating portion;
- a control unit configured to control the alternating current power supplied to the magnetic field forming mechanism, based on a temperature value measured by the temperature measuring unit and a target temperature; and
- a gas supply unit configured to supply a treatment gas to the substrate mounted on the mounting stand from a peripheral edge of the mounting stand.
3. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:
- a rotating mechanism configured to rotate the mounting stand about an axis extending from a central portion of the mounting stand perpendicularly to the mounting surface of the mounting stand when seen in a plan view.
4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the mounting stand includes a plurality of mounting stands stacked one above another, the gas supply unit installed between an inner wall of the processing vessel and a side surface of the mounting stand.
5. A method of performing a heat treatment with respect to a substrate mounted within a processing vessel, comprising:
- mounting the substrate on an inner portion;
- inductively heating a heat generation regulating portion annularly installed in an outer periphery portion of the inner portion to extend along a circumferential direction, by supplying alternating current power to a magnetic field forming mechanism and by allowing magnetic fluxes parallel to a mounting surface of the inner portion to pass through the heat generation regulating portion, and transferring heat from the heat generation regulating portion to a central portion of the inner portion through the inner portion;
- measuring a temperature of the heat generation regulating portion;
- controlling the alternating current power supplied to the magnetic field forming mechanism, based on a measured temperature value of the heat generation regulating portion and a target temperature; and
- supplying a treatment gas to the substrate mounted on the inner portion from a peripheral edge of the inner portion,
- the heat generation regulating portion having a thickness dimension set equal to or smaller than two times of a skin depth which is decided based on a magnetic permeability and resistivity of the heat generation regulating portion and a frequency of the alternating current power, whereby the heat treatment is performed in such a state that a temperature of a central portion of the substrate is higher than a temperature of a peripheral edge portion of the substrate.
6. A method of performing a heat treatment with respect to a substrate mounted within a processing vessel, comprising:
- mounting the substrate on an inner portion;
- inductively heating a heat generation regulating portion annularly installed in an outer periphery portion of the inner portion and provided with an outer end surface and a notch cut on the outer end surface to annularly extend along a circumferential direction, by supplying alternating current power to a magnetic field forming mechanism and by allowing magnetic fluxes parallel to a mounting surface of the inner portion to pass through the heat generation regulating portion, and transferring heat from the heat generation regulating portion to a central portion of the inner portion through the inner portion such that a temperature of a central portion of the substrate becomes higher than a temperature of a peripheral edge portion of the substrate;
- measuring a temperature of the heat generation regulating portion;
- controlling the alternating current power supplied to the magnetic field forming mechanism, based on a measured temperature value of the heat generation regulating portion and a target temperature; and
- supplying a treatment gas to the substrate mounted on the inner portion from a peripheral edge of the inner portion.
7. The method of claim 5, wherein the heat treatment of the substrate is performed by rotating the inner portion about an axis extending from a central portion of the inner portion perpendicularly to the mounting surface of the inner portion when seen in a plan view.
Type: Application
Filed: Sep 29, 2014
Publication Date: Apr 2, 2015
Inventors: Tomihiro YONENAGA (Nirasaki City), Cheoljung KIM (Nirasaki City), Yumiko KAWANO (Nirasaki City)
Application Number: 14/499,565
International Classification: C23C 14/28 (20060101); C23C 14/54 (20060101);